Bangalore to host India-Serbia Davis Cup tie

New Delhi, April 28: Bangalore will host India’s Davis Cup World Group playoff tie against Serbia Sep 12-14. “In consultation with the captain and players of the team, AITA has decided to hold the next Davis Cup World Group Qualifying tie against Serbia in Bengaluru. This tie will be held from 12th to 14th September 2014,” said All India Tennis Association (AITA) secretary general Bharat Oza in a statement here Monday.

The winning nation will qualify for the World Group in 2015 while the losing country will contest in the Zone Groups. India qualified for the playoff when they beat South Korea 3-1 at Busan in second round of Group I Asia/Oceania in the first week of April. The 2013 finalists will travel to India looking to continue their seven-year-long presence in the World Group. Serbia has made the quarter-finals or better every year since 2010. For India, this tie represents a chance to return to the Davis Cup’s top table.

Serbia will undoubtedly present a greater challenge for India. The 2010 champions may have suffered a loss to Switzerland in the World Group first round this year but their form in recent years has seen them become a force to be reckoned with. Serbia hold a 2-1 head-to-head over India in Davis Cup.